JP2010039912A - Device and method for acquiring vein pattern, and vein template - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a device and method for acquiring a vein pattern, and a vein template, for improving the security of a vein authentication system while reducing a false rejection rate. <P>SOLUTION: The device for acquiring a vein pattern includes: a light source part which emits near-infrared light which is structured (structured near-infrared light) and near-infrared light which is not structured (non-structured near-infrared light) respectively to a part of a living body; a light source control part which controls the light source part to switch between the structured near-infrared light and the non-structured near-infrared light; an imaging part which images the part of the living body to create imaging data by the structured near-infrared light (structured light imaging data) and imaging data by the non-structured near-infrared light (non-structured light imaging data); an image comparison part which compares the structured light imaging data with the non-structured light imaging data to determine a correspondence of pixels between them; and a three-dimensional information calculation part which calculates vein three-dimensional information based on the correspondence of the pixels. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vein pattern acquisition device, a vein pattern acquisition method, and a vein template.

  In recent years, in the field of biometric authentication, a vein pattern running in the body is being used as a characteristic unique to the human body. The vein pattern is a very convenient authentication tool because it has high authentication accuracy and is difficult to impersonate.

  When performing such authentication, it is necessary to perform some kind of matching between the reference image of the human vein pattern and the input image input at the time of authentication. As an example of this matching process, image matching or pattern A technique such as matching is used.

  In a general biometric authentication system, there is a sensor for acquiring an input image, and a vein image of a biological part such as a finger is photographed by the sensor. The biometric authentication system verifies the identity by comparing an input image obtained as a result of photographing with a reference image registered in advance (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-213427 A

  Here, most of the existing vein authentication systems as shown in Patent Document 1 use a two-dimensional image as a reference image. However, the posture of a living body part with respect to illumination conditions and sensors (for example, how to place a finger) Etc.), the same finger of the same person may be recognized as a completely different image on the two-dimensional image. In such a case, there is a possibility that vein authentication fails even though the vein is the registered person.

  In addition, in the vein authentication system using vein two-dimensional information as shown in Patent Document 1, two-dimensional information is acquired or forged by some method by a third party, and vein authentication succeeds by so-called “spoofing”. There is a possibility that.

  Therefore, there is a demand for a method capable of reducing the false rejection rate (FRR) and preventing the “spoofing action” and improving the security of the vein authentication system.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such problems, and the object thereof is to provide a new and improved vein pattern that can reduce the rejection rate and improve the security of the vein authentication system. An acquisition device, a vein pattern acquisition method, and a vein template are provided.

  In order to solve the above problems, according to an aspect of the present invention, a light source unit that irradiates a part of a living body with structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, respectively. A light source control unit that controls irradiation of the structured near-infrared light and the unstructured near-infrared light by controlling the light source unit, and images a part of the living body, An imaging unit for generating imaging data with structured near-infrared light and imaging data with unstructured near-infrared light, imaging data with structured near-infrared light, and Compare the imaging data with unstructured near-infrared light and the pixel data between the structured imaging data with near-infrared light and the imaging data with unstructured near-infrared light. An image comparison unit for determining a correspondence relationship; and Calculating three-dimensional information of a vein present inside the living body based on response relationship, the three-dimensional information includes a three-dimensional information computing unit to the vein pattern, the vein pattern acquisition device is provided.

  According to such a configuration, the light source unit irradiates a part of the living body with structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, respectively, and the light source control unit controls the light source unit. Then, irradiation switching between structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light is performed. The imaging unit captures a part of the living body, and generates structured imaging data using near-infrared light and imaging data based on unstructured near-infrared light, respectively. The image comparison unit compares the structured imaging data with near-infrared light and the imaging data with unstructured near-infrared light, and the structured imaging data and structure with near-infrared light. The correspondence relationship of the pixels with the imaging data by the near infrared light that is not converted is determined. Further, the three-dimensional information calculation unit calculates three-dimensional information of veins existing inside the living body based on the correspondence relationship between the pixels, and uses the three-dimensional information as a vein pattern.

  The vein pattern acquisition apparatus further includes a pixel value correction unit that calculates pixel values of pixels that form the structured near-infrared imaging data, and the pixel value correction unit includes the pixel value correction unit. Is the maximum value of the corresponding pixel value when the pixel value of the pixel constituting the structured near-infrared imaging data is within a predetermined range. It may be rewritten as

  The vein pattern acquisition apparatus further includes a vein pixel estimation unit that estimates pixels corresponding to veins existing inside the living body from the imaging data of the unstructured near infrared light, and the image comparison The unit rewrites the pixel corresponding to the vein included in the unstructured near-infrared imaging data and the pixel value included in the structured near-infrared imaging data to a maximum value. The correspondence relationship with the selected pixel may be determined.

  The structured near-infrared light is composed of an irradiation pattern in which strip-shaped bright portions irradiated with near-infrared light and strip-shaped dark portions not irradiated with near-infrared light are alternately arranged, The light source unit may sequentially irradiate a plurality of irradiation patterns having different areas corresponding to the bright part and the dark part, and different arrangement orders of the bright part and the dark part.

  The structured near-infrared light has different illumination patterns in which a combination of bright and dark states in the vicinity of one bright part irradiated with near-infrared light or one dark part not irradiated with near-infrared light is different. It may be constituted by.

  The light source unit is an array light source in which a plurality of light sources capable of emitting near-infrared light are arranged in an array, and the light source control unit performs lighting control of each of the light sources constituting the array light source. You may go.

  The light source unit is a line light source in which a plurality of light sources capable of emitting near-infrared light are arranged in a line, and the light source control unit performs lighting control of each of the light sources constituting the line light source. You may go.

The light source unit further includes an optical filter designed to make the light and dark state unique.
The light source control unit may perform insertion control of the optical filter.

  The vein pattern acquisition apparatus further includes a storage unit that records a parameter for associating a spatial coordinate system and a coordinate system in the imaging data, and the three-dimensional information calculation unit uses the parameter to calculate the three-dimensional information of the vein May be calculated.

  You may further provide the template registration part which registers the said vein pattern as a template.

  The apparatus further includes an authentication unit that authenticates the vein pattern calculated by the three-dimensional information calculation unit by comparing the vein pattern calculated by the three-dimensional information calculation unit and the template registered in advance. Good.

  In order to solve the above problems, according to another aspect of the present invention, a light source unit that irradiates a part of a living body with structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, respectively. Irradiating the part of the living body with the unstructured near-infrared light by controlling the image, and imaging the part of the living body and imaging with the unstructured near-infrared light Generating the data; controlling the light source unit to irradiate the structured near-infrared light to the part of the living body; imaging the part of the living body; Comparing the structured imaging data with near-infrared light and the imaging data with unstructured near-infrared light and generating the structured data Imaging data with near infrared light and the unstructured A step of determining a correspondence relationship of pixels with imaging data by near-infrared light; and calculating three-dimensional information of veins existing inside the living body based on the correspondence relationship of the pixels; A vein pattern acquisition method including the step of forming a vein pattern.

  In order to solve the above problems, according to still another aspect of the present invention, image data obtained by imaging a part of a living body with each of structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light is used. A vein template comprising a vein data storage area storing vein three-dimensional information corresponding to an individual vein pattern, which is collated with the three-dimensional vein information existing inside the living body calculated based on the vein template, is provided. The

  According to the present invention, since the vein pattern can be acquired as three-dimensional information instead of two-dimensional information, it is possible to reduce the person rejection rate and improve the security of the vein authentication system.

  Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, in this specification and drawing, about the component which has the substantially same function structure, duplication description is abbreviate | omitted by attaching | subjecting the same code | symbol.

The description will be made in the following order.
(1) Principle of three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection (2) First embodiment (2-1) About configuration of vein pattern acquisition device (2-2) About vein pattern acquisition method (2-3) About vein template (3) About hardware configuration of vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to each embodiment of the present invention (4) Summary

<Principle of three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection>
First, prior to describing the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to each embodiment of the present invention, the principle of three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection used in the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to each embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Details will be described with reference to FIG. 1A to 4 are explanatory diagrams for explaining the principle of three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection.

  In order to reconstruct 3D information of an object from a captured image acquired by imaging an object in 3D space, the correspondence between the position of the object in 3D space and the coordinates in the captured image is determined. It is important to understand. One of the principles used for reconstruction of this three-dimensional information is the principle of triangulation using structured light as shown below.

  In the triangulation method using structured light, a light source (for example, a projector) for projecting structured light, which is light having a specific pattern, onto an object, and an object on which the structured light is projected. An imaging device (for example, a camera) for photographing is required. In this method, structured light with a known light pattern is projected onto the object and the structured light pattern on the object is photographed. From the degree of change between the known light pattern and the photographed light pattern, the third order of the object is obtained. Estimate the original shape.

  That is, when structured light having a specific pattern is projected onto an object, the structured light is distorted according to the three-dimensional shape of the object. For example, when structured light SL having a lattice pattern as shown in FIG. 1A is projected onto a sphere B as shown in FIG. 1B, the optical grid is projected on a spherical surface as shown in FIG. 1B. Looks changing. In a stereo vision method generally used for extracting three-dimensional information, it is difficult to find out which point of structured light corresponds to which point on an object (search for corresponding points). However, in the case of the specific structured light as shown in FIG. 1A, the feature points on the light pattern can be easily found, and the amount of movement of the feature points on the grid caused by the projection (ie, distortion) Condition) can be easily estimated. Here, as a method of finding the feature points, for example, Harris Corner Detector or the like can be used.

  Since the amount of movement of the feature point on the optical grid is directly related to the three-dimensional shape of the object B onto which the structured light SL is projected, the relationship between the three-dimensional shape of the object and the amount of movement of the feature point is formulated. By doing so, the three-dimensional information of the object B can be extracted. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the principle of so-called triangulation method is applied, and the feature points on the structured light are determined based on the distance and angle between the light source or the imaging unit and the object, the focal position of the imaging unit, and the like. By formulating the correspondence, the three-dimensional shape of the object can be estimated from the two-dimensional captured image.

Generally, three-dimensional shape estimation methods using structured light are roughly classified into the following three methods.
1) Time division multiplexing method (Time Multiplexing Method)
2) Neighborhood information method 3) Direct encoding method

1) Time-division multiplexing method The time-division multiplexing method continuously projects multiple types of light patterns (structured light) onto an object, and calculates the pattern projected from the light source (projector) from the sum of all the light patterns. In this method, each pixel has a unique value. In other words, this time division multiplexing method is a method in which each pixel constituting the structured light is gray coded in time series and the structured light is continuously projected onto the object.

In this method, an object is sequentially irradiated with a series of light patterns in which a band-shaped bright part irradiated with light and a band-shaped dark part not irradiated with light are alternately arranged. The dark part arrangement is a so-called binary code. For example, it is possible to represent 2 ⁿ codes by projecting n different light patterns (structured light) onto an object.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 3, three types of structured light SL1 to SL3 having different widths and numbers of the bright portions A1 and dark portions A2 and the arrangement order of the bright portions A1 and dark portions A2 are given to the object B. By projecting, it is possible to project a line having eight different values. With the unique value assigned to each pixel, it is possible to easily identify each pixel in the column direction of the image captured by the imaging unit.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, the arrangement of the bright part A1 and the dark part A2 is a vertical stripe pattern, but when combined with the structured light having the bright part A1 and the dark part A2 of the horizontal stripe pattern, Can represent binary code. Therefore, it is possible to easily identify individual pixels in both the row direction and the column direction of the image captured by the imaging unit, and it is possible to easily search for corresponding points.

2) Neighboring information method The neighboring information method is a unique value for each pixel by projecting one type of light pattern instead of projecting a plurality of types of light patterns as in the time division multiplexing method described above. Is a method of assigning. At this time, in the neighborhood information method, when attention is paid to a specific pixel, a combination of values (codes) assigned to the pixels existing around the focused pixel is determined for each pixel constituting the light pattern. The light pattern is set differently. As an example of such a light pattern, for example, a light pattern that is set so that the pattern in the vicinity of each pixel is unique as shown in FIG. 4A and FIG. .

3) Direct encoding method The direct encoding method is unique to each pixel by projecting one type of light pattern instead of projecting a plurality of types of light patterns as in the above-described time division multiplexing method. This is a method of assigning the value of. At this time, in the direct encoding method, the intensity of the light to be projected is modulated to give a density gradient or color is combined so that all the pixels constituting the light pattern have different codes. A pattern is set.

  As described above, the method for estimating a three-dimensional shape using structured light has three main methods. However, in the vein pattern acquisition device according to each embodiment of the present invention described below, In particular, the three-dimensional information of the vein is estimated using a three-dimensional shape estimation method using a time division multiplexing method or a neighborhood information method.

(First embodiment)
<Configuration of vein pattern acquisition device>
Next, the configuration of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  For example, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment includes a light source unit 101, a light source control unit 103, an imaging unit 105, a vein pixel estimation unit 107, and a pixel value correction unit 109. The image comparison unit 111, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113, the template registration unit 115, the authentication unit 117, and the storage unit 119 are mainly provided.

  The light source unit 101 irradiates the living body surface S (for example, the finger surface FG) with near infrared light having a predetermined wavelength band. Near-infrared light is highly permeable to body tissues, but is absorbed by hemoglobin in the blood (reduced hemoglobin), so when irradiating near-infrared light on the fingers, palms and back of the hand, The veins distributed inside the fingers, palms and back of the hand appear in the image as shadows. The shadow of the vein that appears in the image is called the vein pattern. In order to image such a vein pattern satisfactorily, the light source unit 101 emits near infrared light having a wavelength of about 600 nm to 1300 nm, preferably about 700 nm to 900 nm.

  Here, when the wavelength of near-infrared light emitted by the light source unit 101 is less than 600 nm or more than 1300 nm, the proportion absorbed by hemoglobin in the blood is small, and it is difficult to obtain a good vein pattern. It becomes. Further, when the wavelength of near-infrared light emitted by the light source unit 101 is about 700 nm to 900 nm, the near-infrared light is specifically absorbed by both deoxygenated hemoglobin and oxygenated hemoglobin. Therefore, a good vein pattern can be obtained.

  Here, the light source unit 101 according to the present embodiment may be an array light source in which a plurality of light emitting diodes capable of emitting near-infrared light having the above-described wavelength are arranged in an array. A linear light source in which such light emitting diodes are arranged in a line may be used.

  Further, instead of using a light source such as a light emitting diode having the above wavelength band, a light emitting diode capable of emitting light including the above wavelength band and a filter for optically band limiting the emitted light. Combinations may be used.

  Here, in the light source unit 101 according to the present embodiment, it is preferable to adjust the number of light sources constituting the light source unit 101 according to the resolution of the imaging data necessary for the vein pattern acquisition process. For example, when data having a size of 512 pixels × 512 pixels is necessary as imaging data, the number of light sources that can realize the resolution is preferably provided as the light source unit 101. In addition, the number of light sources incorporated in the light source unit 101 can be adjusted by combining various image processing techniques.

  Near-infrared light emitted from the light source unit 101 propagates toward the living body surface S (for example, finger surface FG), and enters the inside as direct light from the side surface of the living body. Here, since the human body is a good scatterer of near-infrared light, the direct light entering the living body propagates while being scattered in all directions. Near-infrared light transmitted through the living body enters the optical element of the imaging unit 105.

  The light source unit 101 according to the present embodiment is controlled by a light source control unit 103 to be described later, whereby unstructured near-infrared light (hereinafter referred to as unstructured light or unstructured near-infrared light). Or structured near-infrared light (hereinafter also referred to as structured light or structured near-infrared light).

  The light source unit 101 according to the present embodiment may include a light source that irradiates structured near infrared light and a light source that irradiates unstructured near infrared light, respectively.

  The light source control unit 103 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like. The light source control unit 103 controls the above-described light source unit 101 to perform irradiation switching between structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light. For example, when the light source unit 101 according to this embodiment is an array light source in which a plurality of light sources are arranged in an array or a line light source in which a plurality of light sources are arranged in a line, light source control is performed. The unit 103 performs lighting control of each light source, and switches between structured light and unstructured light. In addition, when switching between structured light and unstructured light is performed using an optical filter or the like, the light source control unit 103 controls the optical filter insertion mechanism to control the optical Perform filter insertion control.

  More specifically, for example, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment uses the above-described time division multiplexing method, the light source control unit 103 includes the light source recorded in the storage unit 119 or the like. It is possible to perform lighting control of a plurality of light sources based on a lighting control database, lighting control information, and the like. The light pattern used in the time-division multiplexing method is defined by the area of the bright part and the dark part and the arrangement order of the bright part and the dark part. It is possible to generate a light pattern. Even when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment uses the above-described neighborhood information method, the light source control unit 103 stores the lighting control database of the light source recorded in the storage unit 119 and the like. Based on this, it is possible to perform lighting control of a plurality of light sources.

  Further, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment uses a time division multiplexing method, the light source control unit 103 can output structured light so that the resolution required for imaging data can be realized. It is preferable to set the type. For example, when the imaging data by structured light needs to have a resolution of 128 × 128 pixels, seven types of structured light in which bright and dark stripes are formed along the vertical direction; It is preferable to perform lighting control so as to realize a total of 14 types of structural processing of 7 types of structured light in which stripe patterns are formed along the horizontal direction.

  The imaging unit 105 includes an optical system including an imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Devices) or CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) and an optical element such as a lens, and a CPU, ROM, RAM, and the like. And an imaging control unit (not shown) that performs drive control of the optical system described above.

  The optical system that constitutes the imaging unit 105 includes one or more optical elements and one or more imaging elements. The background of the imaging position of the optical system (in other words, the place where the biological surface S is placed) is preferably black. By making the background of the imaging position of the optical system black, it is possible to improve the contrast of the image when the living body surface S is irradiated with structured light.

  It is known that the human skin has a three-layer structure of an epidermis layer, a dermis layer, and a subcutaneous tissue layer, but a vein layer in which a vein exists exists in the dermis layer. The dermis layer is a layer present at a thickness of about 2 mm to 3 mm from a position of about 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm with respect to the finger surface. Therefore, by setting the focal position of an optical element such as a lens at the position where such a dermis layer is present (for example, a position of about 1.5 mm to 2.0 mm from the finger surface), the transmitted light transmitted through the vein layer can be reduced. It is possible to collect light efficiently.

  The transmitted light that has passed through the vein layer collected by the optical element is imaged on the image sensor and becomes vein image data.

  The imaging control unit controls the optical system and the imaging device each time a predetermined time interval elapses to generate a plurality of imaging data. More specifically, when structured light is emitted from the light source unit 101, the imaging control unit generates imaging data using structured near-infrared light (hereinafter also referred to as structured light imaging data). . When unstructured light is emitted from the light source unit 101, the imaging control unit generates imaging data using unstructured near-infrared light (hereinafter also referred to as unstructured optical imaging data). .

  At this time, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment irradiates a plurality of types of light patterns using the time division multiplexing method, a plurality of pieces of imaging data are generated as structured optical imaging data. Will be. Further, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment performs light pattern irradiation using the proximity information method, one piece of imaging data is generated as structured optical imaging data. .

  Here, the time interval for imaging the biological surface S can be set to an arbitrary value according to the processing capability of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. The time interval for imaging the living body surface S is preferably linked to, for example, switching control of the light source or the like by the light source control unit 103 described above or switching control between structured light and unstructured light.

  The imaging control unit outputs imaging data generated by the imaging element to a vein pixel estimation unit 107 and a pixel value correction unit 109, which will be described later. The imaging control unit may record the obtained imaging data in the storage unit 119 described later. In recording in the storage unit 119, the imaging control unit may associate an imaging date, an imaging time, and the like with the generated imaging data. Note that the generated imaging data may be an RGB (Red-Green-Blue) signal, or image data of other colors or gray scales.

  The imaging unit 105 according to the present embodiment may be a so-called reflection type imaging unit that captures reflected light of near-infrared light emitted from the light source unit 101 and reflected inside the finger. It may be a so-called transmission type imaging unit that images the transmitted light that has passed through.

  The vein pixel estimation unit 107 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. For example, the vein pixel estimation unit 107 estimates the position of a pixel in which a vein is imaged with respect to unstructured optical imaging data transmitted from the imaging unit 105. Process. This vein pixel estimation process includes, for example, a function for performing preprocessing for vein pixel extraction, a function for performing vein pixel extraction, and a function for performing postprocessing of vein pixel extraction.

  Here, the pre-processing of the above-described extraction of vein pixels includes, for example, a process of detecting a contour of a finger from unstructured optical imaging data and identifying a position of the finger in the unstructured optical imaging data, This includes processing for rotating the unstructured optical imaging data in a plane using the detected finger contour and correcting the angle of the unstructured optical imaging data (angle of the captured image).

  The vein pixel extraction is performed by applying a difference filter to unstructured optical imaging data for which contour detection and angle correction have been completed. The difference filter is a filter that outputs a large value as an output value at a portion where the difference between the pixel of interest and the surrounding pixels is large between the pixel of interest and the surrounding pixels. In other words, the difference filter is a filter that emphasizes lines and edges in an image by calculation using a difference between a pixel of interest and a gradation value in the vicinity thereof.

  In general, when filter processing is performed on image data u (x, y) using a lattice point (x, y) on a two-dimensional plane as a variable using a filter h (x, y), the following formula 1 As shown in FIG. 4, image data ν (x, y) is generated. Here, in the following formula 1, “*” represents a convolution (convolution).

・・・（式１）

... (Formula 1)

  In the extraction of vein pixels according to the present embodiment, a differential filter such as a primary spatial differential filter or a secondary spatial differential filter may be used as the differential filter. The primary spatial differential filter is a filter that calculates the difference in the gradation values of adjacent pixels in the horizontal and vertical directions for the pixel of interest, and the secondary spatial differential filter is for the pixel of interest. This is a filter for extracting a portion where the change amount of the difference between the gradation values is large.

  As the second-order spatial differential filter, for example, the following Log (Laplacian of Gaussian) filter can be used. The Log filter (Equation 3) is expressed by the second derivative of a Gaussian filter (Equation 2) that is a smoothing filter using a Gaussian function. Here, in Expression 2 below, σ represents a standard deviation of a Gaussian function, and is a variable representing the degree of smoothing of the Gaussian filter. In addition, σ in Equation 3 below is a parameter that represents the standard deviation of the Gaussian function as in Equation 2, and by changing the value of σ, the output value when the Log filter processing is performed can be changed. it can.

・・・（式２）

・・・（式３）

... (Formula 2)

... (Formula 3)

  Further, the post-processing of vein pixel extraction described above includes, for example, threshold processing, binarization processing, and the like performed on the image data after application of the difference filter. Through such post-processing, it is possible to estimate the position of the pixel in which the vein is imaged.

  The vein pixel estimation unit 107 transmits the output position information of the pixel in which the image corresponding to the vein is reflected to the image comparison unit 111 and the like described later. Further, the vein pixel estimation unit 107 may output the unstructured optical imaging data itself to the image comparison unit 111 described later together with the position information described above. The vein pixel estimation unit 107 may store the extracted pixel position information and unstructured optical imaging data in the storage unit 119 described later. The vein pixel estimation unit 107 may store the parameters generated when performing the above-described processes, the progress of the process, and the like in the storage unit 119.

  The pixel value correction unit 109 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and corrects the pixel values of the pixels constituting the structured optical imaging data transmitted from the imaging unit 105. More specifically, the pixel value correction unit 109 examines the pixel values of the pixels constituting the structured optical imaging data transmitted from the imaging unit 105, and sets the pixel values included in a predetermined range among these pixels. When there is something that has, the correction is performed to rewrite the pixel value of the corresponding pixel to the maximum value. Here, the pixel value means a numerical value representing the amount of near-infrared light observed at the corresponding pixel, and the amount of light increases as the pixel value increases. That is, as the pixel value increases, the corresponding pixel becomes a color closer to white, and as the pixel value decreases, the corresponding pixel becomes a color closer to black.

  In other words, the pixel value correcting unit 109 according to the present embodiment has a pixel value corresponding to a certain pixel included in a predetermined range (that is, when a light amount not less than a predetermined upper limit value and not more than a predetermined lower limit value is observed). In addition, the pixel value of the corresponding pixel is rewritten to the maximum value, and the color of the corresponding pixel is corrected to be displayed in white.

  The pixel value correction process will be described in detail later.

  The pixel value correction unit 109 outputs the structured optical imaging data whose pixel value has been corrected to the image comparison unit 111 described later. In addition, the pixel value correction unit 109 may transmit pixel position information whose pixel value has been rewritten to the maximum value to the image comparison unit 111 described later. Further, the pixel value correction unit 109 may store the structured optical imaging data whose pixel value has been corrected, the position information of the pixel whose pixel value is rewritten to the maximum value, and the like in the storage unit 119 described later. . Note that the pixel value correction unit 109 may store the parameters generated during the above-described processes, the progress of the process, and the like in the storage unit 119.

  The image comparison unit 111 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, compares the unstructured optical imaging data with the structured optical imaging data, and compares the structured optical imaging data with the unstructured optical imaging data. A correspondence relationship between pixels is determined. More specifically, the image comparison unit 111 associates the pixel corresponding to the vein included in the unstructured optical imaging data with the pixel in which the pixel value included in the structured optical imaging data is rewritten to the maximum value. Determine the relationship. As a result, it is possible to clarify which pixel corresponding to the vein when imaged with unstructured light corresponds to the pixel rewritten to the maximum value when imaged with structured light. The correspondence of feature points between structured light and unstructured light can be clarified.

  In addition, the image comparison unit 111 not only clarifies the correspondence relationship by comparing the pixels corresponding to the veins, but also compares the pixels corresponding to the outer edge of the finger to determine the correspondence relationship of the pixels corresponding to the veins. You may derive | lead-out the correspondence of a feature point separately.

  The image comparison unit 111 outputs information related to the feature point correspondence to the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 described later. Further, the image comparison unit 111 may store information on the correspondence relationship between structured light and unstructured light in the storage unit 119 described later. Note that the image comparison unit 111 may store, in the storage unit 119, parameters generated when performing the above-described processes, the progress of the process, and the like.

  The three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 is composed of, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and based on information representing the correspondence relationship of pixels transmitted from the image comparison unit 111, the three-dimensional information on veins existing inside the living body Is calculated. More specifically, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 stores the parameters associated with the spatial coordinate system and the coordinate system in the imaging data, which are recorded in advance in the storage unit 119, which will be described later, and the pixel transmitted from the image comparison unit 111. Based on the information representing the correspondence, the three-dimensional information of the vein is calculated based on the principle of so-called triangulation.

  Here, the parameters for associating the spatial coordinate system with the coordinate system in the imaging data are the relative position and direction relationship between the actual spatial coordinate system and the coordinate system in the imaging data, and the focal length of the optical system included in the imaging unit 105. It is a parameter determined by etc. This parameter can also be theoretically calculated using information such as the positional relationship, the directional relationship, and the focal length as described above, and is obtained by imaging an object having a known three-dimensional shape. It is also possible to determine by analyzing the imaging data. An example of such a parameter is a so-called camera parameter.

For example, in imaging data including structured optical imaging data and unstructured optical imaging data, a coordinate system representing the positional relationship of pixels constituting imaging data is represented as (x _i , y _i ), and a spatial coordinate system is represented as (X _i , Y _i , Z _i ). In the information indicating the correspondence relationship of the pixels transmitted from the image comparison unit 111, (x _i , y _i ) pixels in the unstructured optical imaging data are pixels corresponding to veins, and the structured optical imaging data in _{(x i + d xi, y} i + d yi) consider the case where it is described that corresponds to the pixel.

  Here, homogenous coordinates are introduced to consider the correspondence between the coordinate system and the spatial coordinate system in the imaging data. At this time, a projection matrix between the light source and the imaging unit when irradiated with unstructured light is represented as P, and a projection matrix between the light source and the imaging unit when irradiated with structured light is represented as P ′. The relationship between the two coordinate systems can be expressed by the following equations 4 and 5. Here, the projection matrices P and P ′ in the following equations 4 and 5 correspond to the parameters recorded in the storage unit 119.

・・・（式４）

・・・（式５）

... (Formula 4)

... (Formula 5)

The projection matrices P and P ′ are known values determined by the design parameters of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10, and (x _i , y _i ) and (x _i + d _xi , y _i + d _yi ) are actual measured values. Therefore, the unknowns in Equation 4 and Equation 5 are only the three-dimensional shape of the vein (X _i , Y _i , Z _i ). Since four equations are derived from Equation 4 and Equation 5, (X _i , Y _i , Z _i ) that is the three-dimensional shape of the vein can be uniquely determined.

  When the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 performs a vein pattern acquisition process, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 stores the calculated three-dimensional shape of the vein in a template registration unit 115 described later as the three-dimensional information of the vein. To transmit. Further, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 performs the authentication process of the vein pattern, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 sets the calculated three-dimensional shape of the vein as the three-dimensional shape of the vein to be authenticated. It transmits to the authentication part 117 mentioned later.

  Note that the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 may record the calculated three-dimensional information in the storage unit 119 described later. In addition, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 may store, in the storage unit 119, parameters generated when performing the above-described processes, the progress of the process, and the like.

  The template registration unit 115 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and the vein three-dimensional information (that is, the vein three-dimensional shape) transmitted from the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 will be described later as a template. Register in the storage unit 119. In addition, when registering the vein three-dimensional information, not only the vein three-dimensional information but also other data (for example, fingerprint data, face image data, iris data, voiceprint) specifying an individual having the registered three-dimensional information. Data, etc.) may be stored in association with the three-dimensional information. Also, a registered vein pattern (three-dimensional shape of veins) registered as a template has header information that conforms to a standard such as CBEFF (Common Biometric Exchange File Format: Common Biometric Exchange File Format Framework). May be.

  The authentication unit 117 includes, for example, a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. Based on the three-dimensional information of the vein generated by the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 and the vein pattern template already recorded, The generated three-dimensional information is authenticated. The authentication unit 117 requests the storage unit 119 described later to disclose a template, and compares the acquired template with the three-dimensional information of the vein transmitted from the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113. The comparison between the template and the transmitted three-dimensional information of the veins can be executed based on the calculated correlation coefficient, for example, by calculating the correlation coefficient shown in Equation 6 below. The authentication unit 117 transmits the template when the template and the transmitted three-dimensional information are similar as a result of the comparison (for example, when the calculated absolute value of the correlation coefficient is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold). The three-dimensional vein information is authenticated, and if it is not similar, authentication is not performed.

The correlation coefficient is defined by Equation 6 below, and is a statistical index indicating the similarity between two data m = {m _i } and n = {n _i }, and is from −1 to 1 Take real values up to. When the correlation coefficient indicates a value close to 1, it indicates that the two data are similar. When the correlation coefficient indicates a value close to 0, the two data indicate that they are not similar. Show. Further, when the correlation coefficient shows a value close to -1, the case where the signs of the two data are inverted is shown.

・・・（式６）

：データｍの平均値

：データｎの平均値

... (Formula 6)

: Average value of data m

: Average value of data n

  The authentication unit 117 may record the authentication result in the storage unit 119 as an authentication history in association with the authentication time. By generating such an authentication history, it is possible to know who has requested the vein pattern authentication and who has used the vein pattern acquisition device 10.

  The storage unit 119 associates various parameters used when the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 calculates the three-dimensional information of the vein, the three-dimensional information of the vein requested by the template registration unit 115, and the three-dimensional information. The other data stored is stored. In addition to these data, it is also possible to store imaging data generated by the imaging unit 105, information indicating correspondence between pixels calculated by the image comparison unit 111, and the like. In addition to these data, the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 appropriately stores various parameters, the progress of the processing, etc. that need to be saved when performing some processing, or various databases. Is possible. The storage unit 119 includes a light source unit 101, a light source control unit 103, an imaging unit 105, a vein pixel estimation unit 107, a pixel value correction unit 109, an image comparison unit 111, a three-dimensional information calculation unit 113, a template registration unit 115, and an authentication unit. 117 and the like can freely read and write.

  Heretofore, an example of the function of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment has been shown. Each component described above may be configured using a general-purpose member or circuit, or may be configured by hardware specialized for the function of each component. In addition, the CPU or the like may perform all functions of each component. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately change the configuration to be used according to the technical level at the time of carrying out the present embodiment.

  For example, in the above description, the case where the three-dimensional information of the vein registered as the template is recorded in the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 has been described. However, the three-dimensional information of the vein is the DVD media, Blu-ray media, It may be recorded on a recording medium such as a compact flash (registered trademark), a memory stick, or an SD memory card, an IC card equipped with a non-contact type IC chip, an electronic device, or the like. It may be recorded on a server connected via a communication network.

<About vein pattern acquisition method>
Next, a vein pattern acquisition method performed by the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8 are explanatory diagrams for explaining the vein pattern acquisition method according to this embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the vein pattern acquisition method according to this embodiment.

[About distortion of structured light]
Although there are two types of imaging techniques using infrared rays, a reflection type and a transmission type, the vein pattern acquisition method according to this embodiment preferably targets reflection type imaging. In a general method, near-infrared rays with a predetermined wavelength (for example, light with a wavelength of 890 nm) are applied to a living body part, for example, a finger, and reflected light is imaged. At this time, since most of the near-infrared light is absorbed by hemoglobin in the blood vessel, it appears relatively black compared to other parts of the living body part. In the vein pattern acquisition method according to the present embodiment, a reflected infrared image is taken and this relatively black portion is determined to be a blood vessel. For example, in the infrared image of the finger shown in FIG. 6A, there is a portion that appears relatively black corresponding to the finger vein. In FIG. 6B, a portion corresponding to the finger vein is indicated by a black line. This black line is a blood vessel.

  In the vein pattern acquisition method according to the present embodiment, for example, in the blood vessel captured image as shown in FIG. 6A, the fact that the blood vessel portion is not completely black is used. That is, when an infrared pattern (structured near-infrared light) is applied to a finger, a portion of the pattern that is not irradiated with infrared becomes a black portion. Further, in a portion irradiated with infrared rays, a relatively black portion (relatively dark portion) and a relatively white portion (relatively bright portion) are detected.

  For example, instead of the unstructured near-infrared light used when acquiring the image of FIG. 6A, structured near-infrared light SL as shown in the left diagram of FIG. In the structured light shown in FIG. 7, the bright part A1 irradiated with near infrared light and the dark part A2 not irradiated with near infrared light alternately in a direction orthogonal to the finger length direction. It is arranged. When the structured light is irradiated onto the finger, an image as shown on the right side of FIG. 7 is taken. The pixel value correction unit 109 according to the present embodiment corrects the pixel value of a relatively black portion corresponding to a vein for the image shown in the bright portion A1. In other words, the pixel value correction unit 109 according to the present embodiment sets a range used for determining whether or not to correct a pixel value so that a relatively black portion of pixels in the bright part A1 can be detected. Since the lower limit value and the upper limit value of this range are different values depending on the presence of veins inside the finger, they can be set to arbitrary values.

  In the vein pattern acquisition method according to the present embodiment, various processes related to vein pattern acquisition as described above are performed only for pixels corresponding to the blood vessels detected in FIG. Here, in the figure shown on the right side of FIG. 7, the pattern of the bright part A1 and the dark part A2 is shown to be the same as the pattern shown on the left side of FIG. The object surface is distorted. This distortion includes information on the height direction of the object (that is, a method perpendicular to the paper surface).

  Next, the distortion in the imaging data obtained by irradiating the structured light will be described in detail with reference to FIG. For example, when the structured light SL as shown in FIG. 8A is irradiated onto the finger FG, the structured light SL is distorted by the finger FG as shown in FIGS. 8B and 8C. Is produced. At this time, since the background portion, the finger surface portion, and the vein V portion have different shapes and positions in the depth direction, the distortion D1 in the background portion, the distortion D2 in the finger surface portion, and the vein portion The degree of distortion of the structured light SL is different from the distortion D3. Therefore, the structured near-infrared light SL is reflected by the finger FG, and is generated as an image including distortion as shown in FIG. The pixel value correction unit 109 of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 corrects the pixel value for a relatively black portion in the image as illustrated in FIG. 8D and sets the pixel value to the maximum value (that is, the pixel value). The pixel value is rewritten to a value where the color is white. The pixel value correction unit 109 outputs the pixel whose pixel value has been rewritten to the image comparison unit 111 as a feature point.

  On the other hand, the vein pixel estimation unit 107 according to the present embodiment estimates a portion corresponding to a vein from the unstructured optical imaging data as illustrated in FIG. 6B, and the image comparison unit 111 as a feature point. Output to. Thereafter, the image comparison unit 111 determines the correspondence between the feature points in each input image data, and the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 calculates the three-dimensional information on the veins based on the information about the correspondence between the feature points. To do.

[Explanation using flowchart]
Next, a vein pattern acquisition method according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  First, the light source control unit 103 of the vein pattern acquisition device 10 according to the present embodiment performs lighting control of the light source unit 101 to irradiate the surface of the living body (for example, the finger surface) with unstructured near-infrared light, The imaging unit 105 images the finger surface (Step S101). The imaging unit 105 outputs the generated unstructured optical imaging data (hereinafter referred to as an image A) to the vein pixel estimation unit 107. The imaging unit 105 may record the generated unstructured optical imaging data in the storage unit 119.

  Subsequently, the light source control unit 103 performs lighting control of the light source unit 101, irradiates the finger surface with structured near infrared light having a predetermined light pattern, and the imaging unit 105 performs imaging of the finger surface. (Step S103). The imaging unit 105 outputs the generated structured optical imaging data (hereinafter referred to as an image B) to the pixel value correction unit 109. Here, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment acquires a vein pattern by the time division multiplexing method, a set of a plurality of imaging data obtained by irradiation with a plurality of types of structured light is obtained. , Image B. Further, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment acquires a vein pattern by the proximity information method, imaging data obtained by irradiation with one type of light pattern is an image B. The imaging unit 105 may record the generated structured optical imaging data in the storage unit 119.

  Next, the vein pixel estimation unit 107 according to the present embodiment estimates the position information of the pixel corresponding to the vein from the unstructured optical imaging data (image A) transmitted from the imaging unit 105 (step S105). ) And output to the image comparison unit 111. The vein pixel estimation unit 107 may output the image A itself that has been subjected to various processes by the vein pixel estimation unit 107 to the image comparison unit 111. Further, the vein pixel estimation unit 107 may record the position information of the pixel corresponding to the obtained vein in the storage unit 119.

  Subsequently, the pixel value correcting unit 109 searches the pixel value of the structured optical imaging data (image B) transmitted from the imaging unit 105 and detects a pixel having a pixel value included in a predetermined range. The pixel value correction unit 109 is a pixel corresponding to a relatively black part (that is, a vein) belonging to the bright part A1, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, for a pixel whose pixel value is within a predetermined range. Determination is made and the pixel value is rewritten to the maximum value representing white (step S107). Subsequently, the pixel value correcting unit 109 outputs position information regarding at least the pixel whose pixel value has been corrected to the image comparing unit 111. Further, the pixel value correction unit 109 may output the image B itself that has been subjected to various processes by the pixel value correction unit 109 to the image comparison unit 111. Further, the pixel value correction unit 109 may record position information regarding the pixel whose pixel value is corrected in the storage unit 119.

  Next, the image comparison unit 111 is based on the position information of the pixel corresponding to the vein output from the vein pixel estimation unit 107 and the position information regarding the pixel corrected from the pixel value output from the pixel value correction unit 109. Then, the feature points in the image A and the feature points in the image B are associated (step S109). The image comparison unit 111 outputs information about the obtained correspondence relationship to the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113. Further, the image comparison unit 111 may record information regarding the obtained correspondence relationship in the storage unit 119.

  Subsequently, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113 calculates the three-dimensional information of the vein based on the information related to the correspondence output from the image comparison unit 111 and the camera parameters recorded in the storage unit 119. The vein pattern is set (step S111). When the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 performs a vein pattern acquisition process, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 transmits the calculated three-dimensional shape of the vein to the template registration unit 115 as the three-dimensional information of the vein. . Further, when the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 performs the authentication process of the vein pattern, the three-dimensional information calculation unit 111 sets the calculated three-dimensional shape of the vein as the three-dimensional shape of the vein to be authenticated. It transmits to the authentication unit 117.

  As described above, according to the vein pattern acquisition method according to the present embodiment, a living body surface is imaged using structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light. It is possible to calculate the three-dimensional shape of the vein existing inside the. In the vein pattern acquisition method according to the present embodiment, the vein pattern is not acquired as two-dimensional information as in the prior art, but is acquired as three-dimensional information. It is possible to improve.

<About vein templates>
Next, a vein template generated using the vein pattern acquired by the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment will be briefly described.

  As described above, the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment can acquire the three-dimensional information of veins existing inside the living body. The three-dimensional information of the vein has a data structure as shown in Table 1 below. That is, as apparent from Table 1 below, when the number of pixels corresponding to the vein is N, the X coordinate, Y coordinate, and Z coordinate of each feature point are described in the data structure of the vein template. Is done.

  The three-dimensional information of veins having the data structure shown in Table 1 is stored by the template registration unit 115 as vein registration information corresponding to the individual vein pattern in the vein data storage area of the vein template. In addition to the vein data storage area, the vein template may be provided with various data storage areas.

  In the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment, when the authentication process of the input vein pattern is performed, the authentication unit 117 obtains the already registered vein three-dimensional information from the vein data storage area of the vein template. get. The authentication unit 117 can perform vein pattern authentication processing by comparing the three-dimensional vein information acquired from the vein template with the three-dimensional information calculated by the three-dimensional information calculation unit 113.

<About hardware configuration>
Next, the hardware configuration of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to each embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a block diagram for explaining the hardware configuration of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to each embodiment of the present invention.

  The vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 mainly includes a CPU 901, a ROM 903, a RAM 905, a host bus 907, a bridge 909, an external bus 911, an interface 913, an input device 915, an output device 917, and a storage device 919. A drive 921, a connection port 923, and a communication device 925.

  The CPU 901 functions as an arithmetic processing unit and a control unit, and controls all or a part of the operation in the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to various programs recorded in the ROM 903, the RAM 905, the storage device 919, or the removable recording medium 927. . The ROM 903 stores programs used by the CPU 901, calculation parameters, and the like. The RAM 905 primarily stores programs used in the execution of the CPU 901, parameters that change as appropriate during the execution, and the like. These are connected to each other by a host bus 907 constituted by an internal bus such as a CPU bus.

  The host bus 907 is connected to an external bus 911 such as a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect / Interface) bus via a bridge 909.

  The input device 915 is an operation unit operated by the user, such as a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, a button, a switch, and a lever. Further, the input device 915 may be, for example, remote control means (so-called remote control) using infrared rays or other radio waves, or an external connection such as a mobile phone or PDA corresponding to the operation of the vein pattern acquisition device 10. The device 929 may be used. Furthermore, the input device 915 includes an input control circuit that generates an input signal based on information input by a user using the above-described operation means and outputs the input signal to the CPU 901, for example. The user of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 can input various data and instruct a processing operation to the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 by operating the input device 915.

  The output device 917 is, for example, a display device such as a CRT display device, a liquid crystal display device, a plasma display device, an EL display device and a lamp, a sound output device such as a speaker and headphones, a printer device, a mobile phone, a facsimile, etc. It is comprised with the apparatus which can notify the information which carried out visually or audibly to a user. The output device 917 outputs, for example, results obtained by various processes performed by the vein pattern acquisition device 10. Specifically, the display device displays results obtained by various processes performed by the vein pattern acquisition device 10 as text or images. On the other hand, the audio output device converts an audio signal composed of reproduced audio data, acoustic data, and the like into an analog signal and outputs the analog signal.

  The storage device 919 is a data storage device configured as an example of a storage unit of the vein pattern acquisition device 10, and includes, for example, a magnetic storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a semiconductor storage device, an optical storage device, Alternatively, it is composed of a magneto-optical storage device or the like. The storage device 919 stores programs executed by the CPU 901 and various data, and various data and databases acquired from the outside.

  The drive 921 is a recording medium reader / writer, and is built in or externally attached to the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10. The drive 921 reads information recorded on a removable recording medium 927 such as a mounted magnetic disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, or semiconductor memory, and outputs the information to the RAM 905. In addition, the drive 921 can write a record on a removable recording medium 927 such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or a semiconductor memory. The removable recording medium 927 is, for example, a DVD medium, an HD-DVD medium, a Blu-ray medium, a CompactFlash (registered trademark) (CompactFlash: CF), a memory stick, or an SD memory card (Secure Digital memory card). Further, the removable recording medium 927 may be, for example, an IC card (Integrated Circuit card) on which a non-contact IC chip is mounted, an electronic device, or the like.

  The connection port 923 includes, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port, i. A port for directly connecting a device such as an IEEE1394 port such as Link, a SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) port, an RS-232C port, an optical audio terminal, an HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) port, or the like to the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 It is. By connecting the external connection device 929 to the connection port 923, the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 acquires various data from the external connection device 929 or provides various data to the external connection device 929.

  The communication device 925 is a communication interface including a communication device for connecting to the communication network 931, for example. The communication device 925 is, for example, a wired or wireless LAN (Local Area Network), Bluetooth, or WUSB (Wireless USB) communication card, an optical communication router, an ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) router, or various types. It is a modem for communication. The communication device 925 can transmit and receive signals and the like according to a predetermined protocol such as TCP / IP, for example, with the Internet or other communication devices. The communication network 931 connected to the communication device 925 is configured by a wired or wireless network, and may be, for example, the Internet, a home LAN, infrared communication, radio wave communication, satellite communication, or the like. .

  Heretofore, an example of the hardware configuration capable of realizing the function of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 according to each embodiment of the present invention has been shown. Each component described above may be configured using a general-purpose member, or may be configured by hardware specialized for the function of each component. Therefore, the hardware configuration to be used can be changed as appropriate according to the technical level at the time of carrying out the present embodiment.

  In addition, the vein pattern acquisition apparatus 10 which concerns on each embodiment of this invention can also be provided as a program which has a function as shown below. This program includes a light source unit that irradiates a part of a living body with structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, and an imaging unit that images the part of the living body. A light source control function for controlling irradiation of the structured near-infrared light and the unstructured near-infrared light by controlling the light source unit to a computer that controls the provided vein pattern acquisition device; An imaging unit control function for controlling the imaging unit to generate imaging data by the structured near-infrared light and imaging data by the unstructured near-infrared light, respectively, and the structured The imaging data by near infrared light and the imaging data by unstructured near infrared light are compared, and the imaging data by structured near infrared light and the unstructured near infrared light are compared. Between the imaging data by light 3D information for determining the correspondence between pixels, calculating 3D information of veins existing inside the living body based on the image comparison function and the correspondence relationship of the pixels, and using the 3D information as a vein pattern This is a program for realizing the calculation function.

  According to such a configuration, the computer program is stored in the storage unit included in the computer, and is read and executed by the CPU included in the computer, thereby causing the computer to function as the vein pattern acquisition device. A computer-readable recording medium in which a computer program is recorded can also be provided. The recording medium is, for example, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a flash memory, or the like. Further, the above computer program may be distributed via a network, for example, without using a recording medium.

<Summary>
As described above, the vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to each embodiment of the present invention uses structured near-infrared light, which has not been used in a conventional vein authentication system, for imaging a biological surface. By using a combination of structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, it is possible to acquire a three-dimensional shape of a vein existing inside the living body.

  In addition, the use of structured light to acquire the three-dimensional shape of an object has been performed in the past, but in the conventional method, the wavelength is reflected on the surface of the object and has a small intensity change due to reflection. Only the three-dimensional shape was calculated using this light. However, in the method according to each embodiment of the present invention, conventionally, light of a wavelength that can penetrate into the living body and is absorbed by blood flowing in a blood vessel, which is near infrared light, is conventionally used. It has become possible to calculate the three-dimensional shape of an object existing inside the living body that was not taken into consideration.

  Thus, the vein pattern acquisition device according to each embodiment of the present invention can easily acquire the three-dimensional shape of the vein. It is extremely difficult to imitate and reproduce a three-dimensional image of a vein running inside a living body, and it is possible to prevent so-called “spoofing” by using such a three-dimensional shape of a vein in a vein authentication system. It becomes.

  In addition, since the vein pattern can be acquired as 3D information instead of 2D information, it is possible to prevent erroneous authentication due to a difference in lighting and a placement error of the living body, and to reduce the rejection rate. .

  As mentioned above, although preferred embodiment of this invention was described referring an accompanying drawing, it cannot be overemphasized that this invention is not limited to this example. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made within the scope of the claims, and these are naturally within the technical scope of the present invention. Understood.

It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the principle of the three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the principle of the three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the principle of the three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the principle of the three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the principle of the three-dimensional reconstruction by structured light projection. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the structure of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the vein pattern acquisition method which concerns on the embodiment. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the vein pattern acquisition method which concerns on the embodiment. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the vein pattern acquisition method which concerns on the embodiment. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the vein pattern acquisition method which concerns on the embodiment. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the hardware constitutions of the vein pattern acquisition apparatus which concerns on each embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Vein pattern acquisition apparatus 101 Light source part 103 Light source control part 105 Imaging part 107 Vein pixel estimation part 109 Pixel value correction | amendment part 111 Image comparison part 113 Three-dimensional information calculation part 115 Template registration part 117 Authentication part 119 Memory | storage part A1 Bright part A2 Dark part FG finger surface SL structured light V vein

Claims (13)

A light source unit that irradiates a part of a living body with structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, and
A light source control unit that controls the light source unit to perform irradiation switching between the structured near-infrared light and the unstructured near-infrared light;
An imaging unit that captures an image of a part of the living body and generates imaging data based on the structured near-infrared light and imaging data based on the unstructured near-infrared light,
The structured near-infrared imaging data and the unstructured near-infrared imaging data are compared, and the structured near-infrared imaging data and the structured data are compared. An image comparison unit for determining a correspondence relationship of pixels with imaging data by near-infrared light,
Calculating three-dimensional information of veins present inside the living body based on the correspondence of the pixels, and a three-dimensional information calculation unit using the three-dimensional information as a vein pattern;
A vein pattern acquisition apparatus comprising: The vein pattern acquisition device further includes a pixel value correction unit that corrects the pixel values of the pixels constituting the imaging data by the structured near-infrared light,
The pixel value correction unit is applicable when the pixel value of the pixel constituting the structured near-infrared imaging data includes a pixel value within a predetermined range. The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pixel value is rewritten to a maximum value. The vein pattern acquisition device further includes a vein pixel estimation unit that estimates pixels corresponding to veins existing inside the living body from the imaging data of the unstructured near infrared light,
The image comparison unit has a pixel corresponding to the vein included in the unstructured near-infrared imaging data, and a maximum pixel value included in the structured near-infrared imaging data. The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a correspondence relationship with a pixel rewritten to a value is determined. The structured near-infrared light is composed of an irradiation pattern in which strip-shaped bright portions irradiated with near-infrared light and strip-shaped dark portions not irradiated with near-infrared light are alternately arranged,
2. The vein according to claim 1, wherein the light source unit sequentially irradiates a plurality of the irradiation patterns having different areas corresponding to the bright part and the dark part, and different arrangement orders of the bright part and the dark part. Pattern acquisition device.   The structured near-infrared light has different illumination patterns in which a combination of bright and dark states in the vicinity of one bright part irradiated with near-infrared light or one dark part not irradiated with near-infrared light is different. The vein pattern acquisition apparatus of Claim 1 comprised by these. The light source unit is an array light source in which a plurality of light sources capable of irradiating near infrared light are arranged in an array,
The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the light source control unit performs lighting control of each of the light sources constituting the array light source. The light source unit is a line light source in which a plurality of light sources capable of irradiating near infrared light are arranged in a line shape,
The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the light source control unit performs lighting control of each of the light sources constituting the linear light source. The light source unit further includes an optical filter designed to make the combination of the light and dark states unique.
The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the light source control unit performs insertion control of the optical filter. The vein pattern acquisition apparatus further includes a storage unit in which parameters for associating a spatial coordinate system and a coordinate system in the imaging data are recorded,
The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the three-dimensional information calculation unit calculates the three-dimensional information of the vein using the parameter.   The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a template registration unit that registers the vein pattern as a template.   An authentication unit is further provided that authenticates the vein pattern calculated by the three-dimensional information calculation unit by comparing the vein pattern calculated by the three-dimensional information calculation unit with the template registered in advance. Item 12. The vein pattern acquisition apparatus according to Item 1. A light source unit that irradiates a part of the living body with structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light, respectively, and controls the unstructured near-infrared light to be emitted from the living body. Irradiating a part of
Imaging a part of the living body and generating imaging data by the unstructured near-infrared light; and
Controlling the light source unit to irradiate a part of the living body with the structured near-infrared light; and
Imaging a part of the living body and generating imaging data by the structured near infrared light; and
The structured near-infrared imaging data and the unstructured near-infrared imaging data are compared, and the structured near-infrared imaging data and the structured data are compared. Determining the correspondence of the pixels with the imaging data with no near infrared light; and
Calculating three-dimensional information of veins present inside the living body based on the correspondence relationship of the pixels, and setting the three-dimensional information as a vein pattern;
Including a vein pattern acquisition method. Collation with three-dimensional information of veins existing inside the living body calculated based on image data obtained by imaging a part of the living body with each of structured near-infrared light and unstructured near-infrared light A vein template comprising a vein data storage area in which three-dimensional vein information corresponding to a personal vein pattern is stored.

Images